Anticipation is building amongst the worldwide and European futsal community as the UEFA European Championships 2010 in Hungary nears closer. Starting on the 19 January and running to the final on January 30th the tournament promises to be a great spectacle. Here, Manchester Futsal Club Blog reviews one of the hot favourites Spain as they look to reclaim the title that they won in Portugal in 2007.
Since winning the 1996 UEFA tournament that preceded the launch of the full championship three years later, Spain have been a dominant force in European futsal and have won the last two titles. Indeed, only in 2003 did they not reach the final.
FIFA Futsal World Cup winners in 2000 and 2004, they were denied in a penalty shoot-out by hosts Brazil in the 2008 final. Spain won all 15 of their matches last year, have not lost over 40 minutes since a December 2005 friendly in Brazil, and cruised through their friendly programme with 50 goals in seven wins. José Venancio López, who took over as coach on the eve of the 2007 finals, has proved able to blend veterans Luis Amado, Javi Rodríguez and Kike with newer selections like Juanra.
Best performance: 1996, 2001, 2005, 2007 winners
Qualifying: Moldova 7-0, Kazahkstan 7-0, Slovakia 4-0 (Group 2 winners)
Key players: Luis Amado, Javi Rodríguez, Kike, Daniel
Qualifying: Moldova 7-0, Kazahkstan 7-0, Slovakia 4-0 (Group 2 winners)
Key players: Luis Amado, Javi Rodríguez, Kike, Daniel
José Venancio López, coach: "It gets harder every time. Everyone thinks we're favourites, but we know Russia are at a high level and have improved a lot in recent years. I believe they're playing better, more as a collective unit. Italy are very strong; they're always very competitive."
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